Post by natnonsense on Dec 18, 2019 6:55:43 GMT
Hey there, my name is Nat and I’m 23. I’ve been aware of my MD since I was a little kid, but I hadn’t been able to put a name to the disorder until I did the research very recently.
I use daydreaming as a coping mechanism and I have since I can remember, which does affect my life negatively. I basically live in my mind in all these different worlds I’ve created for myself because it helps me escape my traumas and my reality. I even develop intense feelings for the characters I make up. Some characters are versions of real people that exist in real life and some are completely fictional, just like sometimes I like to imagine myself as a different person; someone prettier, richer, talented, and more social. (I’ve had many made-up friends and boyfriends to daydream about too). Some of the behaviors I’ve read about that I can relate to include: pacing around the house while listening to music, immersing myself in movies, TV shows, YouTube videos, etc. and zoning out in real life conversations because I want to desperately daydream in that moment. I have a love-hate relationship with MD because while it fills the void I often feel, it also stops me from living to the fullest potential.
Not to mention, I’ve been diagnosed in the past with social anxiety, schizoid personality disorder, and depression. I have taken antidepressants before and they did help a little bit in lowering the MD behavior, but I asked my doctor to stop prescribing them because they were lowering my libido too much. I do go to weekly therapy, but I’m working on other issues, not so much on the daydreaming. I’ve mentioned the daydreaming to my therapists in the past, but they never seem to think it’s anything too worrisome. I hope if I can show this page to my current therapist, then she’ll get an idea of how seriously this affects not just me, but other people too. I guess I want to believe there’s a way to put a stop to this. I do think that reading all your stories might help me feel less lonely and more validated.
I use daydreaming as a coping mechanism and I have since I can remember, which does affect my life negatively. I basically live in my mind in all these different worlds I’ve created for myself because it helps me escape my traumas and my reality. I even develop intense feelings for the characters I make up. Some characters are versions of real people that exist in real life and some are completely fictional, just like sometimes I like to imagine myself as a different person; someone prettier, richer, talented, and more social. (I’ve had many made-up friends and boyfriends to daydream about too). Some of the behaviors I’ve read about that I can relate to include: pacing around the house while listening to music, immersing myself in movies, TV shows, YouTube videos, etc. and zoning out in real life conversations because I want to desperately daydream in that moment. I have a love-hate relationship with MD because while it fills the void I often feel, it also stops me from living to the fullest potential.
Not to mention, I’ve been diagnosed in the past with social anxiety, schizoid personality disorder, and depression. I have taken antidepressants before and they did help a little bit in lowering the MD behavior, but I asked my doctor to stop prescribing them because they were lowering my libido too much. I do go to weekly therapy, but I’m working on other issues, not so much on the daydreaming. I’ve mentioned the daydreaming to my therapists in the past, but they never seem to think it’s anything too worrisome. I hope if I can show this page to my current therapist, then she’ll get an idea of how seriously this affects not just me, but other people too. I guess I want to believe there’s a way to put a stop to this. I do think that reading all your stories might help me feel less lonely and more validated.
how much showing the page to the therapist would help, because MD is not an official mental illness yet, it's still being researched. Anyway, I'm hoping it does help. I hope this forum is helpful. I'm glad you found you are not alone.
